ABBY EATS HERSELF TO DEATH AT 29; Brain disorder led woman to a tragic end.

Byline: By Mark McGivern

TRAGIC Abby Redpath, the victim of a rare medical disorder, has eaten herself to death.

Abby, 29, was diagnosed with Prader-Willi Syndrome at the age of just 16.

It meant she ate continuously, even though she needed considerably fewer calories to maintain an appropriate weight for her size.

By the time she was 15, her legs had given way as her muscles failed. Her mother Sally watched her 24 hours a day to control her insatiable urges for food and, for the last 18 months of Abby's life, slept on a sofa to provide round-the-clock care.

She was with her at the family home in Wooler, Northumberland when she died last Tuesday.

Yesterday, after Abby's funeral in the small parish church near the family home, Sally, 50, paid tribute to her daughter whose illness caused her to self-destruct.

She said: 'She was a floppy baby, which we now know is a classic sign of the syndrome, but then we didn't have a clue

'Throughout childhood, she had problems with her muscle tone, her eyes and was also slow to learn, but she was still highly intelligent.

'She was always very determined and strong-willed and knew what she wanted to achieve.'

As Abby's eating increased, however, her moods frequently became black - a sign of the flaw in the brain which is believed to cause the condition.

Sally, who is married to engineering company partner Terry, 57, and also has a son, Paul, 32, added: 'We had trouble taking her out because she was so poorly with gastric problems, respiratory problems.

'You name it, she had it. She was going blind with diabetes and there was nothing anyone could do.

'Towards the end, even she didn't want to be here. She just deteriorated slowly. It's just a very cruel way to die